Everything's Gone
by Shinzui Naru
Summary: A short Nuriko past-fic, but not exactly centered on Nuriko. Erm, yeah, you'll know what I mean if you read it...and I'll know if you like it if you leave a review! ^_^


The Letter

Everything's Gone

This idea has been BUGGING ME FOR WEEKS!!! The FY characters don't belong to me though. It's a Nuriko-past-fic, and therefore has some spoilers. 

~*~

"Kourin!"

"Brother, wait! Wait for me!" Kourin shouted, chasing after her older brother. Another girl chased after her. This child's name was Miya, and she was a close friend of Kourin and Ryuuen's. She was the same age as the older child; however, Kourin took a liking to her. The three children were almost inseparable.

"Kourin, watch where you're going!" Miya cried, worried for the younger child's safety. Kourin was often known to hurt herself because she didn't pay attention. One time that stood out in Miya's mind was when they were playing hide-and-seek in the forest just outside their village.

Ryuuen had leaned against a tree, and was counting to twenty. Kourin and Miya frantically ran for hiding places. Miya had settled for a bush against a tree, and had squeezed between the two. She pushed a few leaves aside from the bush and peered out from it, looking for Kourin. The young girl was still looking for a place to hide. 

"Twenty! Ready or not, here I come!" Ryuuen cried. Kourin looked up, startled at hearing her brother's voice. She panicked and started to run. 

There was a lake nearby, one that was rumored to have poisonous snakes in it. Kourin didn't know this, and carelessly ran along its bank. She slipped on a patch of mud and skidded into the lake. Miya ran from her hiding place and to the lake, looking over its edge. Ryuuen was two steps behind her.

"Brother! Miya!" the young girl coked. Ryuuen, forgetting danger and fear, dove into the lake and pulled his sister from its depths. 

Miya frowned now; Kourin was careless too often. If she wasn't careful, she would be seriously hurt. She called the girl's name again.

Ryuuen, walking a few yards ahead of them, stopped and turned to wait for his sister and friend.

Kourin was still running, and had soon reached the middle of the street. Miya paused for a moment to catch her breath as it happened – a cart was quickly approaching, and Kourin was in its way. Within seconds Kourin was on the ground, and the cart had landed on its side. Miya had barely blinked, and already their lives had been changed forever.

Ryuuen took to cross dressing shortly after Kourin's death. He insisted on being called by her name, spoken to like a girl, treated like one. He hardly ever came out of the house. And not once did he look into his parents' eyes after that. 

Miya walked past his family's home every day, and asked if he would come and play, or read, or do anything. But his parents always shook their heads and said, "No, he is still grieving. Let him alone."

_She_ was alone. No one seemed to understand. She hadn't just lost one close friend – she had lost them both. 

One evening, three days after Kourin's funeral, she sat down with angry tears in her eyes, and started to write on a sheet of parchment.

~*~

Ryuuen - 

Three days have passed since…well, since then. The accident. I haven't seen you once since the accident. Are you okay? No – I know you aren't. I know you probably feel like everything's gone now. 

But…I think that's what friends are for. To help you get through those times that you can't stand alone, and to pester you even when you want to be. After all, you only depress yourself staying alone, right?

Kourin's already gone, and now I feel like I'm losing you. To tell the truth, I don't know if I could stand losing you, too. I miss you so much…

Won't you please come back? Be a friend to me – and let me be one to you.

-Miya

~*~

Miya stared at the paper in her hand, her eyes unblinking. She had been working all afternoon, and practice copies of her work were strewn over the floor. But now, she held the final copy. 

_"What am I going to do with this?"_ she wondered, fingering the paper. _"If I give it to him, I…"_ She sighed, folding the paper in half. _"I don't know."_

She sat on the floor of her room, thinking. Twice she read the contents of her letter, and twice she pondered over its eventual fate. 

Suddenly a look of determination crossed her face, and she stood up. She had already lost her closest friend – she couldn't deny it any longer; Kourin wouldn't return. She would not lose Ryuuen as well.

Night had already come, and the scent of dinner was in the air. Miya sighed to herself and hoped her determination would hold steady through the next day.

~*~

Bright sunlight didn't wake her the next morning; the sky was still dark. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, Miya dressed and combed her hair, then quietly snuck out of her house. She carried the letter in her hand. 

A small pond was settled near Ryuuen's house. It was there that Kourin's memorial had been placed. Miya often liked to go there before the accident four days earlier – it was peaceful, watching mist rise from the water. But since Kourin's death, she had avoided the place like the plague.

She passed the pond while on her way to Ryuuen's home. And from the corner of her eye, she saw a small, ghostly girl dressed in a beautiful dress. For a moment she dismissed the figure as a spirit. Many had been seen around the pond early in the morning or late at night. 

But then, a gust arose and blew the girl's hair around her face. Miya stopped – ghosts were not affected by wind, or any other weather.

Violet hair blew in the wind, and skirts ruffled. Rose-colored eyes blinked, staring blankly at the water. Miya could hardly stutter out a name. 

_"Idiot! Why are you at a loss for words _now_?!"_ she scolded herself. Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward and stood beside the girl.

"R – Kourin?" she said quietly. The girl turned and looked at her silently. Miya held out her hand, showing the letter to the girl. "Kourin, could you…if you happen to see Ryuuen, please give this to him." And she quickly walked away.

Kourin watched her leave, holding onto the letter with both hands as if it would blow away. When Miya was out of sight, she gazed at the paper. Slowly, Kourin's delicate fingers brushed over it. The girl unfolded the letter, and began to read.

Sorry, cheesiness abound. And I know this is very rushed. But I haven't really written much since Fanfiction.net went down. So I'm sorry about the poorly written letter, and the hundreds of other mistakes. _ But since you've made it all the way down here, please leave a review!!


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